Ellenville (3-1) is off to its best start in five seasons and David Beckham, er, Burns, has played a huge role in the Blue Devils' success.

"He's erased any questions any of his teammates or the coaches have," says Ellenville coach Tony Borriello. "It's been pretty tough, coming into a new program, with all the expectations. But Brian's our field general."

Burns actually had a short-lived football career, playing quarterback for the Ellenville modified team as a seventh- and eighth-grader. But he said he lost interest in the sport, so he gave soccer a try.

Burns played striker and later goalkeeper. However, his heroes were never Beckham or Freddy Adu. They were Peyton Manning and Brett Favre.

Burns watched them on Sunday afternoons. He watched his close friend, Steve Coutant, who graduated, lead Ellenville under center last fall. He wanted to be the guy who threw a tight spiral on a crisp day to a waiting wide receiver in the end zone.

Borriello gave Burns his shot when he came out for the team in January. There were no guarantees.

Sure, Burns took his share of ribbing. But he could also take a hit. He could throw a good ball and run just about as well as any Ellenville running back.

Burns beat out two other players for the quarterback position.

"I wasn't nervous because Brian was a soccer player, I was nervous because he's a rookie," says Ellenville wide receiver Pedro Rivera. "He's got a lot of pressure on him, but he isn't scared. Brian's taken over."

Burns hit Rivera with a 10-yard score with 3:58 remaining to give Ellenville a 6-3 win over Goshen in its season-opener. The new quarterback has been on since. Burns, who is 6-foot, 165 pounds, is athletic and versatile.

He can run, avoiding blitzes, and he can pass, creating on the fly. Burns, who has four touchdowns this season, even put his right foot to good use in a 26-19 Section 9 Class B Division II win over James I. O'Neill last Friday.

Burns kicked field goals of 29 and 37 yards on the two first attempts of his career. He added a 20-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Marc Sassenscheid in the fourth quarter to put the game away.

"I can't believe he was a soccer player," says O'Neill coach Tim Hendershot. "He knows what he's doing out there, he did a good job pointing out blitzes and protections against us. He's just a well-rounded athlete."

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